Jakarta – Unable to accept the burning of her effigy, President Megawati Soekarnoputri urged the people not to insult state symbols when expressing their aspirations, Antara reported.

"I cannot accept if [the state] flag was burnt, or effigies of me or Pak Hamzah Haz were burnt," she said Wednesday at the state palace, referring to the vice president. She did not specify any cases which had defaced state symbols.

Megawati urged people "not to forget national culture". "I asked myself once when did we, as a state, start to have such actions [of insulting state symbols]," she said.

During recent demonstration against fuel, utility price hikes, demonstrators burnt posters and effigies of Megawati and Hamzah.

On Tuesday, a female Acehnese activist was sentenced to six months in prison for painting a red "X" over a poster of Megawati. Last year, two demonstrators were jailed in Jakarta for stepping on pictures of Megawati and Hamzah during a rally.